Oshawa councillors simplify question on ward voting

Oshawa City Hall

OSHAWA -- After hearing from the public, Oshawa councillors have simplified a planned referendum question on whether the City should go back to electing councillors by wards.

A public meeting was held on Feb. 26 for input on the wording of the question slated for ballots during the Oct. 27 municipal election.

The new question reads: “Are you in favour of electing all Oshawa councillors, other than the Mayor, by ward vote instead of general city-wide vote?”

Coun. Roger Bouma proposed the change. He was seconded by Coun. Amy England, but Coun. Bouma said several councillors were drafting similar motions when he submitted his.

“There was a consensus in the room based on the feedback we were getting,” he said, adding that he believes it is an easy to understand question.

The previous question approved by council late last year was slightly longer and read: “Should the Council of the City of Oshawa pass a bylaw so that all councillors, other than the mayor, are elected by ward vote instead of general vote?”

The bylaw for the newly worded question goes to council on March 17 and the question will have to be approved by the Province.

Coun. Bouma said he checked the wording with Oshawa clerk Sandra Kranc.

“I gave it to the clerk at break and said will this work and she said she believed it would pass muster with the Province.”

Oshawa moved to a general vote, where all councillors run city-wide as opposed to geographically defined wards, in the 2010 election. The move came after a referendum question on the issue in 2006. However, the question was subsequently criticized as confusing.

Reporter Reka Szekely covers the City of Oshawa for Metroland Media Group’s Durham Region Division. Reka's social media column appears every other week. Contact her on Facebook, Twitter (@rszekely)